Bushkill man seeks appeal of life sentence

A Bushkill man is asking the Pike County Court to reconsider his case in which he was convicted of the murder of a Lehman Township man.

BETH BRELJE

A Bushkill man is asking the Pike County Court to reconsider his case in which he was convicted of the murder of a Lehman Township man.

Cameron Harinarain is claiming that his lawyer rendered ineffective counsel during the trial, Pike County District Attorney Ray Tonkin said.

Although he was 18 and not considered a minor at the time of the murder, Harinarain also claims that the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision declaring a mandatory life sentence for juvenile offenders unconstitutional should apply to his case.

An evidentiary hearing will be held before Judge Joseph Kameen in February.

Kameen then will decide if either claim has any merit, Tonkin said.

Harinarain and Justin Culver were convicted of accompanying Marquis Keeys in breaking into the home of Barry Rose, a retired corrections officer, to steal guns.

The three broke into the home, in the gated community of Saw Creek, early in the morning of Aug. 24, 2007.

When Rose woke up and confronted the intruders, he was shot and killed in front of his adult daughter.

Harinarain and Culver were sentenced in 2009 to life in prison without parole for second-degree murder.

Keeys was convicted on charges of pulling the trigger that killed Rose. He is serving two consecutive life terms, plus 13 to 47 years in state prison.

Harinarain and Culver were unsuccessful in 2011 in challenging some evidence admitted at trial, including their own confessions given to state police during the investigation.

Harinarain said he was not given his rights as required, while Culver said his statement was coerced.